Managing stakeholder contestation and negotiation in amenity-driven land-use planning.

Many destinations are promoting their natural and cultural amenities to attract visitors and bolster their local tourism product. Increasingly, such efforts are associated with inflows of amenity migrants. In many destinations, local amenities are created to facilitate increased tourism and amenity migration. Growing research reveals that meaningful involvement of local residents in planning for tourism and amenity migration can minimize local contestation and negotiation over tourism induced change, and promote the sustainability of tourism planning initiatives. This research examines the engagement processes associated with an emerging amenity-driven golf-resort development in Ucluelet, British Columbia. The meaningful engagement of Ucluelet’s residents in the rezoning of a 370-acre parcel of private land minimized contestation and negotiation among stakeholders, and generated a planning outcome that aligns with the community’s established vision. Ucluelet provides a pertinent example of the ways in which the politics of place can be managed through meaningful and inclusive stakeholder engagement.